And God Said…

SERMON SERIES: “AND GOD SAID…”

Let’s face it, for the next two months we are going to hear a lot of “he said” and “she said” stuff as our nation prepares for November’s presidential election. A sermon series can not completely protect you from all the political ads you will likely see and hear in the weeks ahead, but hopefully we can provide some life-giving truth and love about what our Heavenly Father wants for us. And let’s face it, if there is going to truly be hope for the world it will only come from God’s Word. So the week after Labor Day and running right up to election weekend, our weekend worship messages will focus on some of the more familiar sayings from scripture that we need to hear now every bit as much as when they were first spoken.

On October 30 we observed Reformation Day. Reformation Day marks the anniversary of Martin Luther’s famed posting of his 95 Thesis on the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany. Luther’s action was a call for change and renewal in the church of his day. What most concerned Luther was that the church and Christians of his day were focusing on the trappings and wrappings of Christianity at the expense of authentic faith in Jesus Christ as revealed in scripture.
Reformation should never be something that is observed, as though it is in the past. Reformation is an on-going process whereby we constantly examine our customs, traditions and even beliefs to make sure that they have not lost their focus on the nature and will of God as revealed in the life, death, resurrection and teaching of Jesus Christ.
Reformation often involves some pain, because it involves our letting go of old forms that have become false gods or idols. We do not like to lay down our idols because we may have fond memories or high expectations of all sorts of our human creations. Some of these human creations may even have served our faith well in the past. But times change and our loyalties can became misplaced.